After entering the valley, the further in they went, the more desolate the environment became. There was almost no vegetation on the surface, and the uninhabited mountain path passed through sharp rocks. Only withered grass and brambles grew from the cracks in the rock walls. In the distant darkness, there seemed to be some withered tree branches. The cold wind in the mountains was like black smoke as it passed through the branches, making creaking sounds.
Brando knew that this was because the nutrients in the soil had been absorbed by the Golden Demonic Tree. He held the torch to illuminate the surrounding rock walls. Occasionally, there would be a few white skeletons in the shadows. They looked like animals that had accidentally entered the forbidden area and became the Golden Demonic Tree's food.
The Roman held the torch and followed closely behind. She covered her bag with one hand and looked around nervously and curiously. This was the first time she had been so far away from home. It was as if the dream of a merchant was about to come true. The dangers, excitement, and the unknown wealth and treasures on the trade route had always supported merchants and adventurers to prosper on this continent.
Besides, following Brando gave her a sense of security.
The two flames passed through the valley one after the other. Brando placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. In the game, once they passed through this area, they would enter the territory of a type of monster, the Rotten Beast.
The Golden Demonic Tree was a terrifying monster. Or rather, it was a type of golden tree. Its original form was probably an Elven Holy Tree, but after the Tree Herder implanted the Blood of God, it awakened into a Golden Demonic Tree. Tree Herders were one of the major cults in the game. In this war-torn world, where the flames of civilization could not reach, darkness thrived. Not only did the Undead exist, but there were also cults living in the soil. In the game, villains like the Tree Herders acted mysteriously. They left their traces everywhere, like a thread that ran through the entire game. They let people know that they had a certain purpose, but no one knew what it was.
Brando was no exception.
The Golden Demonic Tree had two abilities. The first was to animate plants. It could turn the shrubs on the land it controlled into monsters in human form, called Rotten Beasts. The Rotten Beasts were like the tentacles and spies of the Golden Demonic Tree. They were everywhere in the valley.
A single Rotten Beast was level seven in the game. Its combat power was about the same as the garrison members that Brando had seen before, but its intelligence was low. The stronger Rotten Beasts were above Level 13 and had awakened Level 1 powers. They were also troublesome opponents for Brando.
The second ability was the Enchanted Fruit. When the Golden Demonic Tree's fruits fell to the ground, they would split open and give birth to a furry, barbarian-like creature. They would grow up to two meters tall within a day. These were the Golden Demonic Tree's children and elite guards. Their levels ranged from level 20 to 22. Brando's only trump card against them was the Ring of the Wind Empress.
After decades of accumulation, the number of Demons and Rotten Beasts in the canyon had reached a considerable number. If not for Brando's confidence, it would have been impossible for him and the Roman to safely pass through the canyon. Of course, the Golden Demonic Tree itself was not weak. After all, it was a Tier 2 monster. However, the young man did not intend to provoke it. He knew where it was, so naturally, he would not go near it.
Along the way, only the rustling of their footsteps could be heard. In the silence, it was somewhat frightening. But Brendel felt a sense of familiarity. In the past, he had also brought a large number of ropes, torches, oil lamps, hooks, and rations to find the Golden Demonic Tree. He had followed the same route thousands of times to find trouble with the Golden Demonic Tree.
The Golden Demonic Tree would drop 20 OZ to 30 OZ Strength equipment. At that time, the drops were the best. At that time, any player with a bit of skill would choose to do so. Especially the rumored Heart of the Golden Demonic Tree, which recovered 1 HP per minute. In the early days of the game, it was a godly item.
But now, the only difference was that he had the future Merchant Lady behind him. Brando suddenly felt like he was taking a girl on an adventure in the forest with him. Wasn't the adventure of two people quite romantic?
"Brando?" The Roman suddenly whispered.
Brando turned his head and noticed that the other party's gaze was on his hand. He was slightly startled as he noticed that the Thorn of Light in his hand was emitting a white light from its scabbard.
There were undead nearby! He was shocked, but immediately reacted. Even if Madara didn't control this area, they would still send a small team to monitor it and ensure that no undead escaped. It was just a small team. Brando relaxed a little. A few low-level undead were not enough for him to deal with, but he had to be careful not to alert the Rotten Beasts in the canyon.
He pulled out his sword and pointed the Thorn of Light in a direction. The light on the blade was clearly brighter, and Brando immediately knew that the small team of undead was in this direction. He gestured for the Roman to move further away, then extinguished the torch and moved step by step in that direction.
*****
There was indeed a small team of undead in the canyon, but these skeletons were currently in a bit of trouble. Leading them was the Lich Kabuka. Its performance in Bucce not only allowed the human scout to escape, but also led to the death of one of its comrades. Rothko sent it here to punish it for its disappointing performance, and also to remind it not to be too eager to appear too smart in front of its boss or master.
Kabuka obviously understood, but the more important thing was how to block the attacks of the three monsters in front of it.
Initially, it and its skeleton soldiers had killed a creature in the canyon that was covered in thorns and looked like a human-shaped shrub that stood up. Now, its own kind seemed to have come looking for them. There were three of them. These monsters were shrouded in a pile of withered branches, and under their heads, there were two lumps of fire staring at these undead creatures. There were a few scattered skeletons around them.
The battle seemed to be on the verge of breaking out.
What are these roots and grass? The green flames in Kabuka's eye sockets flickered.
Seeing that the other party was about to attack again, it could only brace itself and change its skeleton soldiers to strong bows. It extracted the blue Soul Fire to ignite the arrows, and then shot out a wave of arrows. Unexpectedly, the two Rotten Beasts that came into contact with the flames let out hissing screams and turned into two lumps of flames on the sand.
The Lich immediately let out a cackle. This thing was stronger than its skeleton soldiers, but as long as it was a plant, it would be afraid of fire. Right, why didn't it think of this before? What a blunder. Kabuka raised its bone staff, and with a bang, half of the last Rotten Beast's body exploded, filling the air with wood chips.
Seeing the Lich below dancing with joy, Brando, who had climbed up a protruding white rock, couldn't help but laugh. This thing really didn't know what was good for it, daring to use magic here. Magic was one of the Golden Demonic Tree's favorite nutrients. The Golden Demonic Tree's thirst for it was like a drug. As long as there was a trace of magic in this area, the Golden Demonic Tree would immediately discover it, and the Lich didn't even notice. It really wanted to die.
However, he was also in a bit of trouble. After all, he and the Roman were here. He had to find a way to quickly get to a higher place, or else he would be buried together with these brainless undead.
He turned around and pulled the Roman up. The merchant girl saw the small group of undead below and couldn't help but blink her eyes. Her bright eyes weren't filled with fear, but curiosity.
"I recognize that Lich." She said softly.
"Shh!"
It wasn't that easy to differentiate between undead. Brando only thought that the Roman was joking. Between the skeleton soldiers and the Lich, there was almost no difference in appearance other than the slight difference in soul waves. It wasn't just the low-level undead that were like this. Even the high-level undead were distinguished by their accessories or other obvious characteristics.
"I really do recognize it, Brando. I saw it from afar the last time in your house." The merchant girl said solemnly.
"Yes, yes. Be quiet. If we alarm them, we'll have to bear the consequences."
Brando squinted his eyes. He could already see some rustling figures moving forward in the shadows. Judging from the way they moved, they should be Rotten Beasts. After counting to thirty, he couldn't count anymore. There were too many of them, and it was too dark. However, the Lich still hadn't ordered the skeleton soldiers to extinguish the Soul Fire on their arrows. Plants were attracted to light, so he had already concluded that the Lich was just a skeleton scattered on the ground.
"There seems to be a lot of things around us, Brando." The Roman said.
"Yes, come with me. Lower your body and don't alarm them. "
The two of them continued to climb higher. Brando led the way in front, while the Roman knelt on the rock and moved forward bit by bit. Now, he was beginning to feel the benefits of bringing the merchant girl along. She didn't panic at all in such an environment, which was difficult for normal people to do.
He remembered that in the game, when he teamed up with some female party members to enter some scary places, they would often encounter people shouting and wrangling. That wasn't the most embarrassing thing. The most embarrassing thing was that some men were like that too.
As he thought about it, he quietly looked downwards.
With the Lich and its skeleton soldiers as the center, the Rotten Beasts had already gathered into a few torrents. Kabuka finally sensed that something was wrong. It subconsciously chanted the incantation for [Curtain of Darkness]. But halfway through, two dark red monsters charged out from the crevices of the rocks and tore its skeleton soldiers to shreds.
Martha above, Lord Rothko! What the hell is this, there's no need to monitor this place at all!
Kabuka didn't care about its subordinates at all. There was no mercy in Madara's army. Of course, it was still allowed to protect itself, so it scuttled up the rock behind it. The Lich's agility and strength weren't low, but normal people would be easily fooled by its appearance as a Mage.
However, Brando didn't appreciate this scene at all, because he saw the Lich scuttling towards him.
Damn, can't you choose a better direction?
He didn't even dare to pull out the Thorn of Light. Otherwise, with a light stick in his hand in the darkness, wouldn't he immediately become a target for everyone?
But he immediately saw a dark red Rotten Beast suddenly jump up and grab the Lich's calf. It dragged it down. At this moment, the canyon was already surrounded by Rotten Beasts. The skeleton soldiers were probably already torn to pieces. If Kabuka hesitated for a second, it would immediately follow in its footsteps.
"Get rid of it!" Brando couldn't help but yell in his heart.
At the same time, he felt Roman grabbing his shoulder tightly from behind. She seemed to be as nervous as him. Anyone could see that if the Lich got any closer, the Rotten Beasts would discover them as well.
However, the young lady's breath was like a fragrant orchid, which made Brando a little restless. He turned around and saw Romaine staring blankly in another direction.
Eh?
Brando subconsciously followed her gaze and suddenly sucked in a breath of cold air.
(Author's Note: Clang clang, a new week has arrived, please support me.
Tomorrow is the release of Little Decadent's Land of Rebirth, Demon Hunter. Legend has it that every monthly vote will give him an extra chapter?)
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